It is somewhat embarrassing for me to ask for financial help to keep the story of Jeju and Gangjeong Village alive, but without your help I will not be able to continue.

Many of you contributed in 2012 which enabled the trip to Jeju and the making of The Ghosts of Jeju. Without your help, the film would never have happened. People around the world and in the U.S. would not know about this important story and the untold history of the U.S. in Korea from WWII to the present day.

Over the past year, I have been able to present the film to various groups and universities from Maine to California where it has been highly acclaimed. I have been able to do this by selling copies of the film and accepting donations along the way just to cover the costs of travel. Many good people have hosted me and passed me on to others. I thank them all for their help and friendship.

Just this week The Ghosts of Jeju was named an official selection of the Peace on Earth Film Festival in Chicago. After four days at the festival (March 6-9), Professor Bruce Cumings will host the film at the University of Chicago.

The exposure of this important story does not end in Chicago. The Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space will screen the film at its annual meeting the following week in Santa Barbara, California.

The day before the meeting in Santa Barbara, the Sonoma County Museum in Santa Rosa has invited me to present the film as part of an exhibit about the April 3rd Massacre on Jeju, though they are not able to defray travel expenses.

I have also been invited to present the film in L.A., San Diego, Phoenix, Tucson, Albuquerque, Taos, and Austin that I would like to do immediately after the Global Network meeting.

Beginning with the Peace on Earth Film Festival and continuing on to the West Coast, the Untold History of the United States in Korea and the ongoing military march to dominate the planet will receive the greatest exposure to date and significantly amplify the voices of Gangjeong and peace activists all over the world, but without your help I will not be able to go to Chicago or to begin this tour.

Readers of my emails and blog know that Pope Francis will visit South Korea in August. At the request of the people of Gangjeong and Jeju, I wrote a letter to Pope Francis and sent him a copy of The Ghosts of Jeju. Right now, there is no more important place in the world for Pope Francis to go to promote peace on earth than Jeju, The Island of World Peace. A visit by the Pope would galvanize the international peace movement and attract the attention of the international media that up until now have ignored the situation on Jeju and the anti-base movement world-wide.

I have exhausted my savings making the film and presenting it, and must turn to you for help to keep this important story alive. Please do what you can.

I continue to be amazed at the influence The Ghosts of Jeju is having around the world. Today, I received a request on behalf of the people of Gangjeong Village to send a copy of the film to Pope Francis, hoping that he will visit Gangjeong Village on his planned trip to South Korea in August. It seems that the peace activists in Gangjeong have engaged in a letter writing campaign directly to Pope Francis inviting him to Gangjeong.

Here is my letter to Pope Francis that will accompany a copy of the film. I would also encourage you to write to Pope Francis.

January 26, 2014

Your Holiness Pope Francis,

The people of Gangjeong Village on Jeju Island, South Korea await your announced visit in August with great anticipation for they have been peacefully, and non-violently protesting the construction of a large naval base to accommodate the U.S. pivot to Asia.

For seven years, these farmers and fishermen, and their peace activist supporters from around the world, have been protesting seven days a week, 365 days a year. The Bishop of Jeju, Peter Kang, has supported the protest with his frequent presence, and by allowing his priests and nuns to participate.

Your Jesuit brothers in South Korea have been at the forefront of this struggle. Several have been arrested, fined, and imprisoned. During my stay there in September of 2012, I got to know them well, and I was pleased to see the Catholic Church and the Jesuit Fathers leading the struggle for peace and justice. And, busloads of Catholic nuns from all over South Korea regularly go to Gangjeong to protest and stand in solidarity with the villagers.

Daily mass is celebrated in front of the main gate to the base. Never before have I witnessed the sense of community shared by people of all faiths and backgrounds.

The struggle in Gangjeong Village is important for the Peace Movement around the world because everything is in focus there. These people are farmers and fishermen who will lose their livelihoods and their 500 year old village. They a protesting against the military and imperial expansion of the United States; they are protesting the occupation of their country by tens of thousands of American troops; they are protesting against the violation of human rights; and they are protesting against the desecration of a pristine ecosystem, home to several UNESCO world heritage sites.

Furthermore, in 2005, Jeju was declared “The Island of World Peace” because of the horrible massacres, at the hands of the U.S. Army in 1948, where as many as 60,000 men, women and children were murdered in a scorched earth campaign to wipe out opposition to the American occupation and the separation of the country at the 38th parallel. What followed during the Korean conflict was the carpet bombing and napalming of North Korea until there were no more targets left. It was the first time that the world would see the unrestrained violence inflicted upon indigenous people fighting for freedom, self-determination, and their basic human rights.

I went to Jeju in September of 2012 to make a documentary film. I thought it would be a short story about the anti-base protest, but what I learned there inspired me to make the enclosed feature-length film, The Ghosts of Jeju, which just recently was named an official selection of the Chicago Peace on Earth Film Festival in March of this year.

The documentary has now been seen in more than a dozen countries, including Russia. It is being translated, by volunteers, into Korean, Russian, French, Japanese, and German because people who have seen it believe this story must be told.

The people of Jeju have asked me to send you a copy of the film in preparation for your visit to South Korea in hopes that you will visit Gangjeong Village to stand in solidarity with them. This film reveals the untold and hidden history of American involvement in Korea from the end of World War II to the present day. Most people in America and around the world, and most Korean people are not aware of this history, nor are they aware of the plans of the U.S. to raise tensions in Asia and to dominate by overwhelming military might.

Your Holiness, the entire world is looking to you as the most influential voice for the poor and for peace and justice around the world. A visit to Gangjeong will give hope to people everywhere who are opposing war, militarism, and the abuse of human rights.

The Ghosts of Jeju is an “official selection” of the Peace on Earth Film Festival! I am completely overcome….the only festival out of 20 that I applied for that has accepted my film. The Ghosts of Jeju was accepted at the Berkeley Film Festival after a friend in Berkeley recommended it to them.

SIXTH Annual Peace On Earth Film Festival, scheduled for the long weekend of Thursday March 6 – Sunday, March 9, at the Chicago Cultural Center.

http://peaceonearthfilmfestival.org/

Follow the link above to visit the official webpage.

Thanks to all of you who supported me in the making of the film including everyone who purchased a copy and everyone who attended a public screening.

Watch The Trailer

Testimonials

"It was a smashing hit....people were crying and they were clapping at the end.....I handed out the DVD's strategically to key leaders in various Swedish cities, and from Finland, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Japan and Mexico.....people passed the hat to send money to the village but I insisted they keep the money towards sending a representative from Sweden to the village ASAP......they loved the music, the story, and the resistance.....many people sent congrats to you....it's was a European opening night showing......5 stars. Add Russia to list of places I sent DVD home with....a man who works directly for Putin."